Little Lane lake no magic spring

At the corner of Little Lane and Roop Street, a small lake hedged in by straw bales pops up from day to day.

One day last week, it turned into a lake feeding a small river running down Roop Street.

It's no magic spring that's producing the water on the road.

"If it was, I'd find a way to use it," said Tom Hoffert, city utility operations manager.

The utility department is drilling a new well off Stewart Street next to Fire Station 1. As they drill, Hoffert said, they put chemicals down the hole to pull out drilling mud, fine silt and sand. The process eventually clears up the aquifer so workers can install a pump and produce potable water.

Until then, though, all the test water pours onto the ground and is gathering in the low spot on the surrounding property -- right on the corner of Roop Street and Little Lane.

Hoffert said he doesn't know how many gallons of water have come out of the well so far.

He said the water will continue to run through the intersection off and on through Friday as workers continue to prepare the well for service.

The well will be ready this winter and is expected to produce between 500,000 and 1 million gallons of water daily.